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State of California--TheResourcesAgency Primary#
<br />DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION NRI #
<br />CONTINUATION .SHEET Trinomial
<br />Page 3 of 3 Resource Name or # (Assigned by recorder) Hillis House
<br />`Recorded by Leslie J. Neumann "Date January 2, 2003 ® Continuation ❑ Update
<br />*B10. Significance (continued):
<br />The Hillis House is located In Floral Park, a neighborhood northwest of downtown Santa Ana bounded by East Seventeenth
<br />Street, North Flower Street, Riverside Drive, and Broadway. Groves of oranges, avocados, and walnuts and widely scattered
<br />ranch houses characterized this area before 1920. Developer and builder Allison Honer (1897-1981), credited as the
<br />subdivider and builder of a major portion of northwest Santa Ana, arrived in Santa Ana from Beaver Falls, Now York in 1922
<br />(Talbert, pages 353-356). "Before nightfall on the day of his arrival, Mr. Honer purchased a parcel of land. And that month,
<br />he began building custom homes in Santa Ana" (Orange County Register September 15, 1981). The parcel chosen became
<br />the Floral Park subdivision between Seventeenth Street and Santiago Creek. "When built in the 1920s, the Floral Park
<br />homes were the most lavish and expensive in the area. They sold for about $45,000 each" (Orange County Register
<br />September 15 1981). Revival architecture in a wide variety of romantic styles was celebrated in the 1920s and 1930s and
<br />Floral Park showcased examples of the English Tudor, French Norman, Spanish Colonist, and Colonial Revival. The Allison
<br />Honer Construction Company went on to complete such notable projects as tre 1935 Art Deco styled Old Santa Ana City
<br />Hall, the Ei Toro Marine Base during World War 11, and the 1960 Honer Stropping Plaza. Honor lived In the neighborhood he
<br />had helped to create, at 615 West Santa Clara Avenue.
<br />In the late 1920s and 1930s, another builder, Roy Roscoe Russell (1881-1965), continued developing the groves of Floral
<br />Park, An early Russell project was his 1928 subdivision of Victoria Drive between West Nineteenth Street and West Santa
<br />Clara Avenue. The homes were quite grand and displayed various revival styles, including Russell's own large, Colonial
<br />Revival mansion at 2009 Victoria Drive. In the early post World War 11 years, Floral Park continued its development as
<br />numerous, smaller, single-family houses were built. Continuing in the Floral Park tradition, they were mostly revival in style.
<br />1n the 1950s, low, horizontal Ranch Style houses completed the growth of Floral Park. Today (2003) Floral Park maintains its
<br />identity as the premier neighborhood of Santa Ana, historically home to many affluent and prominent citizens.
<br />Tire Hillis House qualifies forlisting in the Santa Ana Register of Historical Property under Criterion 1 for its exemplification of
<br />the distinguishing characteristics of the Spanish Colonial Revival. Notable in this regard are the asymmetrical massing, the
<br />use of stucco and tile, and the incorporation of arches, a balcony, and a corbelled overhang into the design. The house also
<br />contributes to the historic character of Floral Park through its age, style, scale, and historic association with an important
<br />mernber ofthe local business community. Additionally, (ha !house has been categorized as "Landmark" for its unique
<br />architectural significance as an intact and substantial interpretation of the Spanish Colonial Revival style. All original exterior
<br />features of the Hillis House are considered character -defining and should be preserved, including, but not limited to:
<br />materials and finishes; roof configuration, materials, and detailing, massing; windows and doors; balcony; chimney,,
<br />architectural details such as corbels, arches, wing wall, tile panel, pierced stucco grille, wrought ironwork; garage; and
<br />original landscape features such as the deader cedar tree.
<br />*B12. References (continued);
<br />Harris, Cyril M. American Architecture: An Illustrated Encvdooedia. New York, WW Norton, 1998.
<br />Marsh, Diann. Santa Ana, An Illustrated History, Encinitas, Heritage Publishing, 1994.
<br />McAlester, Virginia and Lee. A Field Guide to American Houses. Now York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1984.
<br />National Register Bullotin 16A. "How to Complete the National Register Registration Form." Washington DC: National
<br />Register Branch, National Park Service, US Dept of the interior, 1991.
<br />Office of Historic Preservation. "Instnrctions for Recording Historical Resources." Sacramento: March 1995,
<br />Whiffan, Marcus. American Architecture Since 1780. Cambridge; MIT Press, 1969..
<br />"Alison Honer Dies at 84," Tlhe Santa Ana Journal, September 21, 1981.
<br />"Builder of Honer Plaza Dies," Orange County Rogister September 15, 1981.
<br />"History of Floral Park." http:11www.floral-park..com/page2lrtrnl
<br />Talbert, Thomas (editor-in-chief). Historical Volume and Reference Works Inciudino Biological Sketches of Leading Cilizw"Is,
<br />Volume 1. Whtttier, Historical Publishers, 1963,
<br />Santa Ana City Directory, 1931.
<br />DPR 523L
<br />25F-23
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